Pancreatic cancer (PC) is a deadly solid tumor, characterized by late diagnosis, low survival, profound drug resistance, and an oxygen- and nutrient-deprived tumor microenvironment. While the incidence of PC is not particularly high (in Norway approx. 900 patients/year), it is the 4th most common cause of cancer-related death in the Western world, and is predicted to rank 2nd by 2030. Surgery is the only potential cure for PC, however, the majority of PC patients (>80%) are not eligible due to the presence of locally advanced or metastatic disease at diagnosis. For these patients, the only treatment option is chemotherapy. Over the past three decades, Gemcitabine (GEM) monotherapy has been standard chemotherapy. Despite the more recent use of combination chemotherapy regimens (FOLFIRINOX and/or GEM plus nab-paclitaxel), survival benefits remain suboptimal due to treatment failure. The latter is linked to rapid development of resistance to cytotoxic agents, which remains a major challenge in achieving better treatment outcomes. Efforts to increase the efficacy of existing chemotherapy for PC by overcoming resistance are confined by the lack of specific markers for the detection of developing chemoresistance. This project aims to identify potential markers of chemotherapy resistance in PC.
The student will carry out experiments using monolayer cultures of gemcitabine-resistant PC cell lines and matched untreated PC cell lines as control. The following methods will be used: cell culture, microscopy, assessment of viability and proliferation, drug-sensitivity screening, proteomics, siRNA transfection, ELISA, and expression analysis (immunocytochemistry and western blot).
The project will be carried out at the laboratory facility of the Pancreatic Pathology Research team affiliated with the Department of Pathology, Clinic for Laboratory Medicine, Oslo University Hospital (Rikshospitalet), Oslo, Norway. The student will work in close collaboration with the main supervisor and other colleagues in the team. For information visit the group’s page: https://www.ous-research.no/gip
Project duration: January 2024 - May 2025